The Moribund Star
by TheFlyingNeko
Summary: "I've always been saved by Natsu... Whether it was with phantom lord or during the s-class exams. I'm no longer going to be a damsel in distress. This time, I'll be the one who saves others!" A nalu fanfic. Rated T for violence.
1. Disappearance

Hey everyone! I'm back with another Fairy Tail fanfic! I've decided to write a full on out Nalu fanfic this time, dedicated to all Nalu fans out there! I'm planning for this to be about 10-15 chapters, and with the inclusion of some OCs that play a part in the story. **Also, I'm looking for a beta-reader for this fanfic, so if you are interested, please PM me!** Last but not least, I hope you all enjoy this story! Without further ado, lets let the story unfold!

Edit: I've changed the name of the fanfic from 'Damsel in Distress' to 'The Moribund Star' cause that name is just way too mainstream. But both fit well so:)

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or any of its characters:)

-TheFlyingNeko

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><p>"Natsuuuuu…" Lucy whined yet again for the twelfth time in the hour. "How long more do we have to walkkkkk?"<p>

They were on a job together without Gray or Erza for the first time in a while. Thus, they decided to take one that was pretty far away, so they would spend more time together. Lucy was relieved when she realised it was just a job to subdue some bandits.

"I don't know. Why don't you just call out that clock guy?" Natsu said irritatedly.

"I did just half an hour ago! He timed out…" Lucy groaned.

"Whatever the case, it's good news that the train broke down! Right, Happy?" Natsu asked.

"Aye! But you do know you still have to take a train later, right?" Happy reminded him.

"Damn it, Happy! Why must you remind me?!" Natsu said, his face turning pale at the sound of it.

The train from Magnolia to Gerbera station had broken down, and they had to go there to transfer to a different train so as to reach Zinnia, since there were no direct trains. Magnolia to Gerbera was supposed to be a half an hour journey by train, so it would take several hours on foot. However, the ride from Gerbera to Zinnia would take about 12 hours by train, so Natsu couldn't complain about it.

"12 hours, Natsu. 12." Lucy said, with an evil glint in her eyes.

"Lucyyyyyy! Have mercy on me, please!" Natsu pleaded, making an attempt to cover his ears.

"Oh yeah, Natsu. We are going to be taking the train for a whole twelve hours. Imagine twelve hours on a train… Rumbling and shaking and-" Lucy noticed Natsu's pathetic face, and started giggling.

"What's so funny, Lucy?" Natsu asked, pouting.

"Nothing. I was just thinking we should make a deal. If you carry me for the rest of the journey then I'll stop mentioning anything about trains or transportation." Lucy said, a smirk crawling up her face.

"Fine… You promise?" Natsu said.

"Yes, yes, I promise." Lucy said, climbing onto Natsu's back.

"Alright, then! Full speed ahead!" Natsu said, running off at high speed.

"Aye, sir!" Happy said, flying off after him.

"N-n-n-natsu! Not so fast!" Lucy yelled as the wind swished past her face.

* * *

><p>"Finally, a comfy seat!" Lucy said, stretching after taking a seat on the train.<p>

"You mean my back wasn't comfy?" Natsu asked, eyeing Lucy.

"N-no! That's not what I meant! It was warm and relaxi-" Lucy quickly cut off and covered her mouth.

'Did I just try to say that Natsu's back was warm and relaxing? But I have to admit, Natsu's warmth was very comforting… It was just so comfortable that I didn't want to leave his side… Like I could trust him and- Wait, what on earthland am I thinking?!' Lucy thought to herself before going bright red.

"What's wrong, Lucy? Your face is-" Happy asked, before being cut off my Lucy.

"I just need the bathroom for a sec!" She said as she ran off towards the end of the train.

"Lucy, wa-" Natsu called out, before feeling his stomach flip as the train started moving.

"What... On earth... Just happened..." Lucy muttered to herself in front of the mirror in the small cubicle that the train provided. "It's not like I like Natsu that way! Sure, I do trust him and yeah, his back was co-... I mean, I li- NO! I just enjoy his company as a friend, that's all there is… Yeah, Lucy, nothing wrong. He's just your best friend. ARRGH, CLEAR YOUR MIND, LUCY!"

"What's goin' on in there? What's all the racket about? Could you hurry up, damn it… I've been waiting for five minutes already!"

Someone outside the door was yelling at Lucy, who had been in there yelling at herself.

"Oh, sorry! I'll be right out!" Lucy replied, embarrassed to know that someone had heard her yelling at herself.

She exited the cubicle, realising that there was a long queue outside.

"I'm sorry!" Lucy apologized, feeling her face flare up yet again.

As the man who yelled at her walked towards the cubicle, he muttered to himself, 'crazy girl'. Lucy heard it, and really flared up this time, and tried her best to resist the urge to punch him in the face.

"How dare he call me crazy. Foolish old man." Lucy muttered, gritting her teeth.

She walked back to the compartment that Natsu and happy were in and took a deep breath before walking back in again. Natsu was looking exhausted and yet it hasn't even been 15 minutes, while Happy was impatiently flying around.

"Lucy! There you are! It's been so boring without you around! All Natsu had been doing was complaining and complaining non-stop!" Happy cried out as he leaped into Lucy's shoulder.

Well… Natsu is Natsu, after all." Lucy sighed, pretending that nothing had happened.

Lucy sat down and looked out of the window, before realizing the amazing view.

"Whoa... Hang on, are we still in Gerbera?" Lucy asked.

"Aye! This train circles around town for a bit because this town has awesome views!" Happy said.

"I can totally see that! Look at that sunset! it's so amazing and romantic... I mean, if I was with a date, that is." Lucy said, glad to have corrected her mistake quickly.

Even the completely sick Natsu looked out of the window for a while, and the three of them had a rare moment of silence where they enjoyed the sunset.

A while later, the twelve hour long ride was over. Lucy was relieved that no one mentioned anything about what had happened earlier... Not like this bunch of thick headed dimwits were expected to, anyway.

"Here we are, in Zillia!" Lucy exclaimed excitedly, wondering how the town would be like.

She was actually surprised by the number of people who got off the train at Zillia. And by that, she meant none.

The train headed into a tunnel about half an hour ago, since Zillia's station was underground. In fact, the one and only underground station. The station was dim and eerie, and not to mention silent- a very rare situation.

But of course, those situations don't last long.

"Oh man, sweet, sweet, land!" Natsu shouted, lying flat on the ground.

"Natsu! Please, you're disturbing the peace and quiet around here! Man, this must be one of the most peaceful towns in history..." Lucy said, eager to run off to the exit. "C'mon, Natsu! Get your butt off the ground and let's get out of here!"

Lucy tried to pull Natsu to his feet, but to no avail. After all, the dragonslayer was much heavier and stronger, and could pull Lucy down in one heave.

"Fine... Fine... I'll get up. But Lucy, you really have to get stronger." Natsu said, pulling himself up.

"Why? What are you implying?!" Lucy asked.

"Well... The thing is... I couldn't even feel you tugging at me." Natsu said, causing Lucy to gape at him.

"What?! I was pulling with all my might!" Lucy said, shocked.

"You were?" Natsu asked, puzzled.

"Natsu! You're such an idiot! Don't you ever know how to talk to girls properly?!" Lucy asked.

"You're weird, Lucy. You don't even act like a girl!" Natsu exclaimed.

... Before Lucy turned around and stared daggers at him.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, alright?" Natsu said, scared.

"She looks even fiercer than Erza sometimes."

"I can hear you!" Lucy huffed, storming towards the exit.

The moment Lucy exited, she froze, resulting in Natsu crashing into her. Happy was also staring in front, his mouth wide open.

"What the, why did yo-" Natsu whined, before realizing the scene unfold in front of his eyes.

"Natsu... These can't be the bandits listed in the job, right? And I thought this was a peaceful town... I can see why now." Lucy asked.

"I think they are..." Natsu muttered.

At least a hundred bandits were gathered in front of the train station, and it was clear who their target was- Natsu and Lucy. They were all armed with dangerous magic weapons. Lucy, at least, knew they weren't ordinary.

"No wonder the job pays so much!" Lucy complained, getting her keys ready.

"Yeah. They smell dangerous too. Be careful, Lucy." Natsu said, his hands flaming up.

'Wait, did Natsu just ask me to be careful? No, this is not the time, Lucy! Not the time!' Lucy's wild thoughts appeared once again.

"Charge!" The man who seemed like who was in charge of the bandits commanded, as the entire flock charged forward.

There weren't this many listed in the request! If they knew, they would have asked Gray and Erza to tag along! This was a bit too much for two -or three- of them to handle. Natsu was probably the only one who's definitely safe. Lucy was in trouble.

"Go! Gate of the bull, Taurus!" Lucy yelled, sending out Taurus, who let out a war cry before charging towards them.

However, they were just too many. Even though Taurus could handle the enemies around him, the rest flowed through the side and charged towards Lucy.

"Looks like I have to use my trump card, after all. Gate of the lion, Loke!" Lucy said, as Loke appeared in front of her, sending a few enemies flying back.

"Hiyaaaaaah!" Happy yelled as he headbutted a bandit with his max speed as a power boost.

Even Happy was fighting hard.

Lucy took out her whip and unleashed the flure de olivere, managing to take out a few enemies on her own.

Natsu... There's clearly no need to mention him. He was easily clearing out the enemies, and he himself had cleared out half of them already.

However, a man wearing peculiar clothes suddenly appeared. Bright yellow, orange, pink, blue -all the colours- put in random patches. He waited for Lucy to knock out the enemies in front of her, then leaped out to give a surprise attack. But, Lucy didn't flinch. Instead, she flung the whip at him, clearly knowing that he would be knocked away. But...

He grabbed it.

That man grabbed the whip so easily as if it didn't hurt, and sent it flying back to her. Taurus, Loke and Happy were all shocked, but they were too late, even though they has already started sprinting towards her. The man had already sent something flying at Lucy. She sat there in fear, unable to move and injured from her own whip. When the thing he sent flying was was just inches away... Natsu stood in the path of it, stretching his arms out as if to protect Lucy. However, he was too late to attack, so it struck him right in the chest.

And he disappeared.

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><p>Thank you for reading! If you like this story please do support me by following, favouriting, andor reviewing! Critiques are very much welcome:) Thank you!

-TheFlyingNeko


	2. Ropes and Blindfolds

Hey everyone! It's been a while since I've updated, but I've changed the name of the fanfic from 'Damsel in Distress' to 'The Moribund Star'! (As you can see) The name, I realised, was pretty mainstream, so I decided to change it. Besides, both names fit pretty well!

Anyways, here's Chapter 2 of _The Moribund Star_! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail, and it rightfully belongs to our favourite Hiro Mashima-dono!

-TheFlyingNeko:)

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><p>Natsu Dragneel, the strongest member of their team at the moment, had disappeared.<p>

"Natsu...?" Lucy muttered in shock.

"Natsu!" Happy yelled as he came to a standstill. His eyes and mouth were wide open, and tears were about to flow out from his eyes.

"Natsu!" Loke yelled, staring transfixed in horror.

'No way.

This can't be happening.

Natsu did not just protect me from some fatal blow and disappear.'

"We have our hostage, although not the one we wanted... Whatever, let's go." The man said, as he, along with the bandits, disappeared.

"NOOO! NATSUUUUUU! GIVE NATSU BACK!" Lucy screamed, but she was just too late.

He was gone.

"Wait... He said 'hostage'... Right?" Loke said, trying to cheer Lucy up just a bit.

"That's means... Natsu-san is still alive." Taurus said.

"Yeah... T-That's most probably true..." Happy said, tears falling onto his cheeks.

"I'm guessing there was a teleportation lacrima embedded in that arrow he sent there." Loke said. "Lucy-"

"Why... Why didn't he let me get struck? There's no need for someone like him to save me, of all people. Why..." Lucy said, tears streaming down her face.

"L-"

"Taurus, Loke, go back... It's okay... I don't need you here..." Lucy said, looking up with her tear-stricken face.

Taurus hesitated for a moment before going back to the celestial world, knowing that staying would just make it worse. However, Loke stayed behind.

"Loke... Go back..." Lucy said pathetically.

"I refuse. I'm still a member of Fairy Tail, and if someone's down, everyone shares that feeling. If someone is taken away, everyone must fight back. And I must also fight... For my master's happiness." Loke said, putting a hand on Lucy's shoulder.

"We will get Natsu back."

"Yeah... We will... Thanks, Loke." Lucy said, wiping her tears away.

"Sitting here and moping won't do Natsu good. We must try our best and find Natsu!" Lucy declared. "Loke, you should really rest now. We will need your energy later, so for now, leave it to us!"

"Alright then. If you need me, just call my name. I'll come out of my own accord. We don't want to waste your magic power either. See you." Loke said, before going back to the spirit world.

"Yeah! Thanks!" Lucy said.

Lucy then tried to stand up, since she was sprawled out on the ground, but her injured leg sent a wave of shock and pain through her body and caused her to fall back down again.

"Lucy! Are you okay?" Happy asked, picking Lucy up.

"Yeah, I'm fine... This... Is nothing..." Lucy said, as she was slowly put back on the ground again.

She managed to stand this time and sustained it for a while. She looked at her wound and examined it.

"Alright, I'm fine." Lucy said, smiling to happy.

"Aye. Lucy, what's your plan?" Happy asked.

"They didn't leave around any bandits for us to interrogate... But we still need to find the person who gave us this job! It might have been one of the bandits as a lure... Or maybe a helpless citizen! Thinking of that... Doesn't this town seem a little too quiet?" Lucy asked.

They shared a moment of silence where they surveyed the town, and indeed, it was pindrop silence.

"Impossible..." Happy said.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah..."

"Alright then... You take the left and I'll take the right." Lucy said.

"Aye..." Happy said.

"If you run in any trouble, or find something, send up this signal flare." Lucy said, passing Happy one of the signal flares. "I've brought some out with me recently."

"Aye, sir! We meet back here in an hour's time if we have no luck." Happy said, flying off towards the buildings on the left.

"Mm!" Lucy agreed before running off to the buildings on the right.

* * *

><p>"Oh Mavis... Is this for real?"<p>

Lucy had went into all the houses just now, but all of them were empty, and barely had any sign of living. The windows were smashed in, tables flipped. The kitchens were also robbed, and there were several drawers lying on the floor. All that was left was this warehouse.

Hundreds of innocent civilians sat on the ground, each tied up with a bundle of rope. Their mouths were taped up and they had blindfolds on... And it didn't seem like they've only been there for hours.

"Gate of the crab, open! Cancer!" Lucy said, as Cancer appeared.

"Would you need me to cut all their hair-ebi?" Cancer asked.

"No... Cut off their ropes and blindfolds!" Lucy said, sighing. Cancer was as oblivious as ever.

"Okay-ebi." Cancer said, before swiftly cutting off all their ropes and blindfolds.

However, not as expected, the citizens fell on the ground one by one when they were free. They were too weak and only held by those ropes, and couldn't even help themselves take off the tapes on their mouths. Some children had already fainted as well.

"Oh no..." Lucy said, shocked.

Luckily, a few of them managed to sit up and pull off the tapes, and were starting to help the others too.

"I'll get Happy to help too. Cancer, try and remove all the tapes. No- not with your scissor! You're gonna cut them! Use your hands!" Lucy said, before running out.

She sent the signal flare up in the air and it appeared with a boom. Satisfied, she ran back in again.

Lucy, Cancer, and along with five or so of men who were strong enough to help slowly removed all their tapes- that's when Happy arrived.

"Lucy!-" Happy stared in horror at the many civilians, each weak and unable to move.

"Happy! Just in time! We need a little help here..." Lucy said, as Happy rushed over.

"Aye." Happy said, realising that they were helping the rest take off their tapes.

A whole fifteen minutes later, they finally managed to remove all the tapes.

"Who knew removing tapes would be this tiring..." Lucy whined yet again, as she sat facing all of them. "Oh, right! Happy, could you go find some rations for them to consume? Perhaps some water and food would do."

"Aye sir!" Happy said, flying off.

The five citizens who have helped remove others' tapes as well came over to Lucy -Cancer having gone back to the celestial world- and sat down beside her.

"Thanks for saving us. We deeply appreciate it." The man in the middle said, as they bowed to Lucy.

"No, it's fine! We were just here on a job... However, the moment we reached Zillia, the bandits attacked us as if they knew we were coming. And… They took our precious nakama, Natsu away. We have put his safety as our highest priority right now… Speaking of which... Do you know who sent out the job request?" Lucy asked.

"Oh, you're a mage? No wonder! Unfortunately, no, none of us sent a job request. All of us are probably too poor to even afford those kinds of things. We were barely able to feed the entire town and when we finally had our harvests... The bandits came. The bandits always stayed on the mountain to the side, and since robbing us wouldn't be of use since we were all so poor already, they didn't take any action. However, a month ago, they started attacking us, so someone must had sent a request a while ago-"

"But I think I know who." The teenage boy sitting the side said, catching everyone's attention.

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><p>And that's it for now:) I'll update after my exams end, but if you like the story so far, do drop me a review, favourite andor follow! (And thank you to those who have done so, so far!:))

-TheFlyingNeko


	3. Samuel

I deeply apologise for the long hiatus! I was extremely busy with school, since I've (technically) just started high school and exams are killing me. But those horrors are finally over! Yay!

I've actually already written around 20000 words for this fanfic, and I'm halfway done, but I didn't have time to update (oops), and I'm also working on a Zero No Tsukaima fanfic, which some of you may have seen:) (and I'm going to update it after this, I hope)

Well, I'm gonna stop with the stupid excuses...

**Still looking for a beta reader, so if you're up for it please contact me!**

Hope you enjoy the story! I'll update a few more chapters soon:)

-TheFlyingNeko

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><p>Recap: Lucy, Natsu and Happy were on a job to subdue some bandits, but who knew that the bandits would kidnap Natsu, the strongest member of their team? In the chaos, Lucy hardened her resolve to find Natsu, save him, and clear the job. But first, she decided to save the quiet town, which was also subdued by the bandits, and is currently questioning them about the whereabouts of the bandits. She meets a group of civilians and questions them, one of them being a young teenage boy who claims that he knows who sent the request to subdue the bandits.<p>

"But i think I know who." The teenage boy at the side said, catching everyone's attention.

"Who?" Lucy asked.

"The man of the mountain." The teenage boy said.

"No way... That damn guy is in cahoots with those bandits!" A man on the other side said.

"What do you mean the man of the mountain?! He's a dangerous man! You've MET him?!"

"He isn't. He's long been on our side." The boy said.

"He must have tricked you. There's no way he is!" Another adult yelled.

Lucy gaped at the exchange happening in front of her, wondering who 'the man of the mountain' could be. But before she could question what exactly was happening...

"Listen to me first!" The boy screamed, quietening the rest of the group. "It all happened on 7 March, soon after the bandits started attacking the town."

Flashback.

The boy climbed up the mountain, searching for herbs to help his mother with her illness. His mum was down with a terrible flu and could only be healed with the help of a special herb that grew on the mountains. He, being the only child and without a father to help him, had to take up the the responsibility.

The mountain was cold and rough, with an uneven ground and a steep gradient. The north wind blew on him, causing him to shiver once again. He was nearly at his limit. Each step he took was in pain and his bare feet were numb. Cuts from the mountain thorns covered him and he was about to get frost bites on his hands, which gave him so much pain that he nearly gave up. Not to mention that he had to avoid bumping into any bandits.

That's when he thought of his mother.

His sweet, loving mother, who took care of him since he was very young. Everytime he was sick, his mother would take care of him and comfort him. However tired she was, she would work to the bone so they would have money to eat and live. Even if they couldn't afford any footwear, his mother would carve some wood and sew some fabric together to make a temporary shoe for him. His mother would play together with him, even if he didn't have any friends. In fact, she was his only friend. A very good one indeed.

He couldn't afford for her to fade away.

The thought of his mother have him motivation, warmth, and strength to go on. He fought on against the cold, all on his mind was his mother. However, even though he pressed so hard, he slipped on the cold, hard, slippery ice and fell. As he rolled down the ledge, heading towards the cliff, he thought of his mother, and closed his eyes. Before he knew it, the world around him darkened and he could feel himself suspended in the air.

He then regained consciousness. He tried opening his eyes but when he tried to do so his head spinned, so he shut it again. After a few moments of repetitive blinking, he managed to sit up, and found that he was in a small cave. Small, but cozy. His head hurt and spinned, but besides that, he was fine. He realised that his wounds and cuts were treated, and he felt as good as new.

"Where am I...?" He asked dizzily, not expecting any reply.

"My house." A man replied, as the boy jumped.

"And you are...?" He asked, steering his vision to the fireplace, where a man was crouching down to tend the fire.

"The man of the mountain, Thomas." He replied, smiling at him.

"Ahh! You're t-that guy! Go away! Please don't take me as a hostage!" The boy replied, screaming and shouting.

"Relax, boy. What makes you think I would do that?" Thomas asked, frowning.

"Because you are with the bandits...?" The boy asked.

"... No. I'm no longer with them."

"No longer?"

"I used to be a part of them. But... I deeply regret it. I am very ashamed of myself, so I secluded myself in this cave." Thomas said, looking down on the ground. His face had a deep look of remorse and sadness.

"I'm sorry... It's just that everyone has been saying that."

"It's alright, I deserve it for causing so much trouble in the past. Now, may I ask what's your name?"

"It's Samuel, sir."

"Samuel... huh? I take it that you came to look for a herb that is rumored to be able to heal all illnesses?"

"Yes! My mum is extremely sick and I have to bring it back to her so that she would heal up and take care of her and-"

"Alright, enough said. You're a good boy, but rest. You nearly got a frost bite, and you received some poisonous cuts."

"Poison?!" Sam exclaimed.

"Yes. Those thorns outside are poisonous. I've removed most of the poison though, but the small particles in your wound would grow if you moved around too much."

"Oh... I see... But... I can't just lie around... What do I do about the herbs?"

"I have a garden out there, and there are still quite a few herbs. Here, drink this first." Thomas said, handing a bowl with greenish water to him.

"What's this?" Sam asked.

"It's herbal soup. I'll give you instructions on how to cook it later."

"Wait, herbal soup? No I can't drink this! I must leave it for my mum!" Sam explained, placing the bowl down.

"Don't worry, it's easy to cook the herbal soup in large batches, since it's not very concentrated. I have lots of herbs left, and it doesn't matter if you drink a bowl. Of course, your wounds can't be left untreated, so it's necessary or the wounds won't heal for a few months. You don't want to worry your mum, do you?" Thomas asked calmly.

"I don't... Alright then, I'll drink it." Sam said, before picking up the bowl once again and gulping it down.

'What's with this guy...? He's being so kind, and is obviously not a bad guy, but secluding himself here and not saving the village while it's in a crisis? I don't know what his intentions are...' Samuel thought to himself.

"Sir, forgive me for saying this, but... You're just being a coward by hiding in the mountains. You could always go back and apologize... The village needs all the help it can get right now, and if you just stay here you're not going to help with anything." Sam said, after finishing his soup.

"Yeah, I know... I'm sorry. I just don't know how to face it. All I know is that I have to find someway to get the village to forgive me... All right... If I tell you a secret, could you promise not to disclose it to anyone in the village?"

"Alright. Tell me, what is it?"

"I've hid here in the mountains because I heard that the mountain has a lot of gems and gold, deep deep within. I've been seeking refuge here so that I could mine, and see if I could find anything that could help out the village... I know, the village is in financial distress, and with the bandits here, the situation is getting worse. I don't want to see everyone starve, especially with the infertile land. I hope I can find more soon."

He walked towards a small safe and unlocked it. Inside, he revealed a very smal pile of irregular shaped diamonds and gems. There were also small pieces of gold on the right side.

"Whoa..." Sam said, surprised.

"I don't this this is enough to pay my debts though..."

"It's definitely enough! This could last the entire village for a few months!"

"It's not enough for everyone. The village's population is ever increasing, and if it lasts for such a short time it's pretty much useless... Don't reveal that you met me at all when you go back, except to your mum if you want to..."

"You… You really should return. Everybody would be pleased. I know that each and every one of us will be really proud of you, but I respect your decision. We will all await your arrival, Thomas-san."

"Thank you. Now, lie down and have some sleep. I'll pick out the herbs from the garden." Thomas said, before heading towards the exit.

"Thank you, sir. You're far too kind."

* * *

><p>"Mum! I'm home!" Samuel yelled as he stopped running to open the door to his living room.<p>

His mum lay on the couch, staring at the door. She was obviously worried for Samuel and his return, so she heaved a huge sigh of relief.

"Samuel! You're safe! Wait, what are those-" She said, desperately trying to sit up.

"No, please don't move, mum!" Samuel said, helping her back down.

"Samuel, those cuts-"

"Mum, I got the herbs. I have the herbs you need, and also a batch of boiled herbal soup that would help put your fever down-" Samuel said, before widening his eyes as he placed his hands on his mother's head.

"MUM, YOU'RE BURNING!"

"Sorry, Samuel. I was worried sick about you, what happened-"

"Quick, drink this! It helps alot." Samuel said, passing her a container of the greenish herbal soup that he preserved for her.

"Samuel! Listen-"

"I'll explain, mum. I'll explain. But first, please drink your medicine!"

"Alright then..." His mum said worriedly, finally giving in to his persistence.

"So... While I was looking for the herb, I accidentally slipped and fell off the cliff-"

His mum choked and quickly spat out the soup in her mouth.

"What-"

"Mum, relax. I'm fine, can't you see? I was saved by the man of the mountain."

"Wait... You mean..." She said, her eyes widening.

"Yeah. But don't worry, he's on our side. He's long quit the bandits and he deeply regrets it." Samuel said, trying to calm his mum down.

"Why do you think you can trust him? He could have put a bomb or bug on you while you were asleep, and-"

"Mum! Would he give us all these herbs he took years to nurture in his garden?"

"Well-"

"Would be have such a look of guilt on his face if he were a bandit?"

"He-"

"Would he save me from falling down a cliff...?"

"I guess not..."

"We have to trust him... This is what he feared from returning! He didn't want the people here to despise him or loathe him, just because he was part of the bandits! He just wants to make up for his mistakes..."

"I'm sorry, son. But if you trust him so much, I will. Thanks for reassuring me."

"I'm sorry, mum. For interrupting you the entire time. I was just too anxious."

He then told his mum about what how Thomas saved him and gave him food and shelter, while she slowly sipped her soup.

"Alright, mum. You should get some rest. I'll prepare the next batch of the soup, so you should..." He stopped while seeing that his mum was offering her bowl to him.

"Huh...?"

"Here, son. You should have some too. Those cuts need to heal..."

"Don't worry, I've already had some at Thomas-san's place-"

"It's okay, honey." She said, smiling.

That's when he realised where he inherited his never dying persistence.

Flashback.

"I wasn't supposed to tell anyone... But..." Samuel said, looking down.

"Thanks, Samuel! It really helped a lot! I'm sorry, but I would need one last favor from you." Lucy said, smiling at the teenage boy.

"Sure, what do you need?"

"I would need you to bring me up that mountain." Lucy declared.

* * *

><p>I'll update the next installment soon! I hope you've enjoyed this short chapter!<p>

-TheFlyingNeko


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